Demonstrator



July'31, 1951 Filed Feb. 8, 1950 f E fi /IEINFEANK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTdR July 31, 1951 E..RHEINFRANK DEMONSTRATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 8, 1950 INVENTOR fuagxvf fiHf/NF/PA NK 61' ATi'ORNEY 7 Patented July 31, l951 V .DEMoNsTRnToR g Eugene Itheinfrank, New York; N. Y. Application February 8,1959, Serial No; 143,099 (cuss-49) dmnteamnaer the act of March 3,1883, as

-1 5 Claim.

:1 e-Ihe invention described therein may Joe manufractured and used "by .or ;for the Government of the :United ,States for governmental :purposes without the payment to -me:of anyroyaltythereon a'n accordance with vtheeprovisions of the ,act of April 30, 1928 (b. 460,45 Stat. L. 46.7

application is a continuation-impart .of my prior .applicationzSeriahNo. :85',01,1,:now abandoned, filed April 1, 1949, and is also :related to myrcopending application .SerialNo. 15,8;877, filed April. 28,x1950, which also a v4continuanon-,-inpart,ofiapplicationiserial .No. 185,011.

z-flihis ;invention :is .anqinnovation in the means of illust t ng and d monstr ting ;on the face o a screen the relative movements of vessels, motor-v hi le airplanes and other objects by the rus o sm .rn delsidriven or m ved by a conceal d s appa atus or mechanism.

:Irimarily, it comprises ,a :new combination of nests and elements s constructed and c bin d on the hack of the screen as to move the models inanyidirection .and-atanydesir-ed rate of speed; to accurately demonstrate and reproduce in court, in the class-room and elsewhere the .relativemovements, speed, maneuvering space and 59133 Q YfiSSels, motorevehicles and other moving objects when they approachand passer come into collision with other vessels, motor-vehicles, onr ving rlstationary obje ts, on water, on and o ntheair- ,l-Ieretofore, lawyers have tried admiralty and automobile collision cases with the aid of small moses pus d around on the trial table by a That method of .demonstratmg collisions although in some degree helpful to'the court has not been-satisfactory or adequate because neither the s'peedmorthe time con umed during the approach, nor the. maneuvering space available to each, .of the colliding vessels or motor vehicles, lQl'flthe respective course could be accurately demonstrated or illustrated. Now, by the aid of his .DQW i v ntion, th courtsv will be able to determine with reasonable accuracy the speed, time, maneuvering space, and respectivecour'ses which are controlling factors in the fixing of lame for dama es in collision cases.

jnlso', this invention will be-of substantial help in, e, classroom of naval academics and other nsti u o s f arning wh re the artand science Qtnar s tion are t ght. Therelthe device will lie-called or known asthfi trainer insteadof the.

demo st atorlh app ca ion of every uleand. regulation. governing navigation can be illustrated; y u o this devioeandevery situation; centre d m nstr ted -As an aid: natal stue amenlled Aprilfiil, 1928; 370 O. G. 757) dents: instudyingimaneuvers :its valueisrobvious.

Prior to this time, :students have. been tairght navigation ,partly iby illustration .on the szblackboard and bypthe; use .of pictures 'projectedoma screen. One oftherobjects of this invention is to {furnish ;.a new..metho.d of :teaching :navigation that will be more practicaliand produce :far better training than the .methods snow :in-use.

,Another -,object of the invention is to -provide themeans for dramatic illustration in the public and :private schools :of the .ways in uwhich children ;-are frequently injured :or .killed by :motorvehicles while crossing {the-streets and highways, thereby impressing them with thesconstantne'ed for icare and caution more effectively than can be done sby oral admonitions, :or .:by pictures. I

Another object of the invention is to furnish entertainment, amusement and instruction by causing toys :and, models of persons, animals and objectsrof various ,kinds to move abouton the face 10f thecscreen.

The objects t and uses of this invention hereinbeforje mentioned are not intended to exclude other objects .anduses, it :being understood that changes in the form,xsize, proportions and minor details may be made without interference with or sacrifice of the general plan or methodof construction "and combination of functioning members of the invention. Furtherobjects, advantages and uses-will :be apparent when reading the description which follows and the drawings which are part hereof.

Figure 1 is a general plan view of one illustra tive set-up to show the construction of the device; Figure 2 isan :enlarged section onthe line 2f2'0f.FigllI6 1. V

Figure 3 is a detail, shown inelevation of the combination .of the motor -I with zrheostat, resistor, transformer, andreverse lever which are in the reference character '2;

Fig re 4 is :an enlarged elevation on the line 4-4'.0f Figure .1, showingthe manner :in which the ends of the movable across-bar supports II forthe pulley wheels 71.3 are attached to the frame Further referring in detail to the drawings, Figure 1 illustrates one of the innumerable arrangements or set-ups of the members comprising the device:

A frame 20, which is about 40 x 20", is built preferably of wood, and with any desired dimensions. On the front or outer side of this frame a screen [9 is attached, made of card-board, paper pasteboard, cloth, tracing cloth, aluminum, Bakelite, thin glass, or other suitable, nonmagnetic material. The screen is stretched tightly across the frame 29 so that the surface upon which the magnets and models move may be smooth, flat and inflexible. The frame 20 when the demonstrator is in use is mounted on an easel or placed horizontally on a table or on 7 wooden horses. The upper and lower sides of the frame have grooves approximately 4;" in.-

depth and width. Overlapping the edges of these grooves are strips 2| of Bakelite or metal fastened in such manner as to form a slot in and alongwhich a plurality of cross-bars M can be quickly moved and readjusted to any desired position. These cross-bars [4 are U-shaped beams upon which a plurality of pulley wheels [3 and l3a are mounted for supporting driving belts 9 and 9a in a slot in such manner that said pulley wheels can .be quickly moved and readjusted along the cross-bars to any desired fixed position. The cross-bars [4 are made of any non-magnetic metal, preferably of aluminum, because of its lightness and rigidity. The number of cross-bars of the pulley wheels mounted thereon is determined by the number and direction of the courses upon which it is desired to have the modelsmove, a curved course necessarily requiring more pulley wheels and crossbars than would be needed for a straight course.

The driving belts (3, 3a and 9 and 9a) are made of dial cord, waxed cord, string or other suitable material, waxed or otherwise treated to insure a maximum of friction and a minimum of slippage when in contact with the pulley wheels 8 and 8a and drive pulleys I and la mounted on the shaft of motors l and la. The driving belt 9 is operated either directly or indirectly by the motor I, the-indirect method being illustrated in Figure 1 and Figure 2. The apparatus shown in Figure 1 driving the driving belt 9 consists of the motor I fastened to the frame 20 by a bracket 22; a control box 2 contains a rheostat which regulates the motors speed, also a resistor, and a transformenwhich makes possible the use of direct or alternating electric current, and a reverse lever which regulates the movement of the models forward or backward; the driving belt 3 which runs from the pulley 1 on the motor I only to and from the two double-grooved pulley wheels 8 which also carry and operate the driving belt 9; (or the separate driving belt 3 and the two double pulley wheels may be omitted inwhich case the driving belt 9 is connected with and runs directly from the pulley l on the motor I and is driven directly therefrom). The apparatus also includes a slack take up idler pulley wheel A to prevent slippage of the belt 3 operating on the motor pulley wheels; an idler pulley arm 5 and the coil spring 6 which function to maintain steady and continuous tension on the driving belts 3 and/or 9 and help to prevent slippage thereof ion the pulley wheels; a pulley Wheel I0, and asecond slack eliminating arm -II and a coil spring [2 functioning together and adjustable to any Dosition,.for regulating belt tension and for compensating against any change in tension that might arise from a knot or twist in the belt or from any unevenness in the operation of any moving member or part. As shown in Figure 1, the belt 9a is driven in the same manner as described for belt 9, utilizing the respective duplicated parts as indicated by the figure numbers.

A flat permanent magnet 19 about in thickness is fastened to the driving belt 9 by the use of leaders made of thread, thin wire or cord. The leaders from the magnet 16 to the driving belt 9 are glued or otherwise fastened to the top and ends of the magnet and are of such length that the magnet will pass and clear the pulley wheel, that is, pass'between the bottom of the pulley wheel and the back surface of the screen l9. By placing the driving belt 9 about one half inch from the surface of the screen and having the leaders to the magnet the proper length, the leader at the forward or pulling end of the magnet will easily trip off the edge of the pulley wheels 8 and I3, and the belt 9 can thus be operated at turn of the belt and at changes in direction or course without entanglement of the leaders with the pulley wheels. Magnet I6a is carried by belt 9a in the same manner as magnet l8, and performs the same function in the movement of model [8a as magnet l6 does with regard to model l8.

It maybe seen from the arrangementof ele-; ments in Figure 1 that the belts 9 and 9a may be adjusted in order to form converging coursesfor the models 19 and [8a. lnsuch-an arrangement the motors l and la maybe run at a speed to simulate the speeds of the vehicles involved in a collision to be demonstrated. It is possible therefore to demonstrate the exact relative speeds and relative converging courses of the vehicles prior and up to the time of their collision'. It will be noted that the courses and: speeds of the vehicles prior and up to the time of collision are desiredto be shown and hence there meet is rotated by hand a combination pointer and.

ruler, the objects ,of the device being to determine and indicate the headings of the models as they move on their respective courses and to measure the distances between points along said courses. By the use of pencil marks placed upon the map, chart, drawing or painting and spaced along the courses taken by the models, the position of each ship, motor-vehicle or airplane can be illustrated as it was at each minute prior to the instant of the collision, the distance apart at which said marks are placed along the course being determined by the proven rate of speed per minute at which the vessel, motor-vehicle or airplane travelling that course was moving.

I claim:

A device for simulating a collision'of a plurality of vehicles comprising a frame member, aslot extending along each of' the opposite longitudinal, sides of said frame, a plurality of slotted cross bars extending across the frame from one lon' gitudinal side to the other, means slideableinj said frame. slots for adjustably securing said carrying a grooved pulley and having a spring connecting it to another place on the frame, a

plurality of motors attached to said frame, speed control means attached to each motor, a drive pulley connected to the shaft of each motor, a plurality of endless belts, each belt defining a closed circuit by passing over a plurality of grooved pulley Wheels carried by said crossbars and over one of said drive pulleys and over a pulley Wheel carried by said tensioning arm whereb the tensioning arm pulley will eliminate slack from said belt, a plurality of magnets each attached to one of said endless belts by means of tWo opposed filaments, a non-magnetic sheet extending across and bounded by the perimeter of said frame, a map on the upper surface of said sheet, and a plurality of vehicle models having magnets embedded therein and adapted to ride on said surface, whereby a plurality of the grooved pulley wheels carried by the adjustable cross arms may be set to arrange each endless belt in a course to be simulated which courses do not cross but converge at the point of collision to be 6 simulated, the motors may be run at the speed to be simulated and hence the moving magnets attached to the endless belts will move the models on the map surface to simulate the courses and speeds of the vehicles prior to and up to the point of their collision.

EUGENE RHEINFRANK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the .file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,239,395 Mallory Apr. 22, 1941 7 2,400,149 Immerman May 14, 1946 2,486,273 Gibson Oct. 25, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 137,708 Austria May 25, 1934 449,781 Great Britain July 3, 1936 

